How to set up simple click-and-point Zoom on Mac?

Let’s Get Your Mac’s Zoom Feature Working Again!

Let us try to get your simple Zoom feature working again. We will take it one step at a time. There are two options, depending on how you remember it working.

Option 1: Make text bigger when you point at it

This option enlarges individual words or text in a small window when you hold your mouse over them.

Step 1. Click the Apple () in the top-left corner of your screen.

Step 2. Click System Settings.

Step 3. Click Accessibility in the left-hand column.

Step 4. Click Hover Text. You may need to scroll down to find it.

Step 5. Turn Hover Text ON.

Step 6. Move your mouse pointer over some text. Hold down the Command (⌘) key on your keyboard.

The text should appear enlarged in a small window!

If you need help finding this setting, Apple provides an illustrated guide here:

Apple Support: Change Hover Text settings on Mac

Option 2: Make the whole screen bigger

If you remember the entire screen getting larger around your mouse pointer, this is probably the option you want.

Step 1. Click Apple () >> System Settings.

Step 2. Click Accessibility in the left-hand column.

Step 3. Click Zoom. You may need to scroll down.

Step 4. Find Use scroll gesture with modifier keys to zoom and turn it ON.

Step 5. Find Modifier key for scroll gesture and select Command (⌘).

Step 6. Hold down the Command key and scroll your mouse wheel up or down to zoom in or out.

If your mouse has a scroll wheel, this should let you enlarge the screen while keeping your pointer near the area you want to see.

For Apple's illustrated instructions and additional zoom options, visit:

Apple Support: Zoom in on your Mac screen

You can also learn about the available Zoom settings here:

Apple Support: Change Zoom settings for accessibility on Mac

My suggestion

Try Option 2 first if you remember the entire screen getting larger around your mouse pointer. If you remember only the words getting bigger in a small window, try Option 1 instead.

If you cannot find one of these settings, do not worry. Tell us what you see on your screen, and we will try and  guide you through the next step.

One helpful note: Apple sometimes changes its settings slightly between macOS versions, so the wording on your screen may differ. 

Thank you so much for the quick reply everything is fixed and I can now see very well Mac OS I am on

[Edited by Moderator]

You are welcome and thank you for the feedback

🦉-53